Yummy recipe from my childhood: Biscuits Bretons

Finally some time to write. I've been so busy with work and markets that I hardly had time to breath.

This recipe made go back in time to my childhood, thos biscuits are so nice and easy to make. 

Enjoy! Jess

Recipe: Les Biscuits Bretons

Ingredients:

3 Egg Yolks
1 1/4 cup Sugar (125 g)
1 cup Butter (Room temp) (230 g)
3 cups Flour (370 g)
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tbsp Water + 1 Egg Yolk

Makes 4 Dozen Cookies

1. In a clean bowl, place 3 egg yolks, the butter, and the sugar.
2. Mix until fluffy.
3. Add in flour and salt, mix well.

4. Turn dough out onto floured surface and form into a ball. Add water, if needed.
5. Wrap dough in parchment paper or plastic wrap, than place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
6. Roll dough out to approximately 1/6″/ 4 mm thick.

7. Using a cookie cutter, preferable a fluted one, cut the dough and place on a baking sheet.
8. Mix water and egg yolk, then brush each cookie with the mixture.
9. Using a fork, drag the tips across the top of the cookies, making a criss-cross pattern.
10. Bake at 350F/180C for 10-12 minutes.

via Mad About Macarons

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A cup of tea?

I wish I could invite you to one of these tea parties...Ruffled posted these great photos full of downloads to help you to plan your tea party like these PINK favour boxes.

Have a good week!
Jess

Simple white cake

Here's a simple recipe for a cake from allrecipes.com, always handy for last minute tea time with your friends: Enjoy!!!

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 209 | Total Fat: 8.9g | Cholesterol: 56mg

Ingredients

• 200 g white sugar
• 115 g butter
• 2 eggs
• 10 ml vanilla extract
• 190 g all-purpose flour
• 8 g baking powder
• 120 ml milk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x9 inch pan or line a muffin pan with paper liners.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally stir in the milk until batter is smooth. Pour or spoon batter into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven. For cupcakes, bake 20 to 25 minutes. Cake is done when it springs back to the touch. 

Halloween Cupcakes Recipe

It’s almost Halloween and I couldn’t resist posting this great idea. Lucky my colleague Paola suggested it! You can find this and more Halloween recipe on Country Living or on Delish web site.

First of all, to make this luscious dessert, use the Classic Chocolate Cake recipe (see below for the complete recipe). You can also try substituting your favourite cake recipe, or if you're short on time, a boxed mix — one box yields 12 Mini Pumpkin Cakes.

To get the look of these single-serving pumpkin treats, trim the bottoms of cakes baked in mini Bundt pans. Join two cakes so that the fluted tops are at either end, then drizzle with Chocolate Glaze or Vanilla Glaze and sprinkle with coarse colored sugar or nonpareils before the glaze sets. Top with a marzipan stem. After the recipe there is a picture on how to make it.

Classic Chocolate Cake recipe

Ingredients
• 2 cup(s) flour
• 1/2 cup(s) cocoa
• 1 teaspoon(s) baking powder
• 1 teaspoon(s) baking soda
• 1 teaspoon(s) salt
• 3/4 cup(s) butter, softened
• 2/3 cup(s) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup(s) dark brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup(s) sour cream
• 2 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cup(s) milk


Directions


1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour three 6-cup muffin pans (for filled cakes), two 8-inch-round cake pans (for layer cake; pictured), or 2 mini Bundt pans (for Mini Pumpkin Cakes). Set aside. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and set aside.
2. Beat the butter and sugars together in a bowl using an electric mixer on medium-high speed. Beat in the eggs. Reduce speed to medium-low. Stir the sour cream, vanilla, and milk together and add it in thirds, alternating with the flour mixture. Beat until batter is smooth, about 3 more minutes.
3. Divide the batter equally between the prepared pans and bake until a wooden skewer inserted into the center tests clean. For layer cake, it should take about 25 minutes; filled cakes, 20 minutes; and Mini Pumpkin Cakes, 25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
4. Trim cooled cake layers, if necessary, to make level and frost and decorate as desired.
Tips & Techniques

Mix ingredients at room temperature. To quickly take the chill off eggs, run them under warm water.


Chocolate Glaze
Ingredients
• 9 ounce(s) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

• 1 1/2 tablespoon(s) butter

• 1/2 cup(s) heavy cream

Directions


1. Place the chocolate and butter together in a heat-proof bowl; set aside. Heat the heavy cream until it just begins to boil and immediately pour over the chocolate. Stir gently until smooth. Let sit until slightly thickened before using to glaze cakes, about 3 minutes. Place the cake in the refrigerator for 5 to 10 minutes to set the chocolate.
2. For filled cakes: Pour chocolate on each filled cake and smooth over the cake to completely coat. Place the cakes in the freezer until chocolate sets. Remove and store in a cool area.


Tips & Techniques

Place cakes on a wire rack set over a baking pan to catch any glaze drips.

Marzipan stems: from a ball of marzipan make a snake and twist it as shown in picture